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48 Must Follow Tips For The Deepest Clean

May 15th, 2018

By Inno Asuncion

Contributor at Home Hacks

Though some of us consider ourselves to be “clean” people, there are parts of our homes and spaces that end up being neglected. While lots of us clean regularly, most of us avoid doing a “deep clean” until we have company or there is some sort of special occasion.

But you don’t have to keep avoiding cleaning up those cracks and crevices. Get the job done quickly and easily with these deep cleaning tricks.

1) Vent Covers

Stop trying to reach up high to clean all the little slats in your vent. Remove it completely, wipe it down with a paper towel and toss them into your dishwasher and run them on a short cycle with water only. Dry completely and put them back.

2) Toilet Siphons

If you want your toilet to truly be clean, you’ll have to clean its siphon. Turn off the water supply to your toilet and flush it until the bowl is empty. Cover your siphons with duct tape and pour vinegar into the toilet tanks and flush. The vinegar will be trapped inside of the siphons. Let it sit overnight and remove the tape and turn the water back on in the morning.

3) Pillows

You pillows can get downright nasty after a while. So, you’ll want to put two pillows into your washing machine on the hot cycle with one cup of bleach and regular detergent. Run them through the washing machine with an extra rinse cycle. Place them in the dryer with some tennis balls so they don’t lose their shape.

5) Area Rugs

Lay your rug on a flat surface and hose it down so that it’s soaking wet. Pour a little bit of laundry detergent over the rug and on stains. Spray the hose over it again and use a bristle crush to scrub your stains let it sit in the sun for a few hours before you rinse the run out with the hose again. Squeeze the excess water out and let it dry.

6) Electric Stove Burners

Remove your burners and wipe them down with dish soap and a damp cloth. Then run a paste made from baking soda and water onto your burners and let the paste sit for about 20 minutes. Scrub off and dry.

7) Brooms

We use our brooms to clean which means they can get pretty gross. To clean your broom, soak it in a buck of warm water and dish soap. Let it air dry before you put it away. You should also spray your brooms with disinfectant after each use.

8) Glass Cooktop

Soak a rag in hot, soapy water as you sprinkle a thick layer of baking soda on your glass cooktop. Squeeze out the water from the rag onto the cooktop and lay it on top of your cooktop. Let this sit for 15 minutes before you scrub the baking soda away.

10) Stainless Steel

11) Use lemon and salt to clean a wooden cutting board.

Wooden cutting boards tend to pick up everything that gets cut on them. To make sure they get a deep clean, first rub them down with some coarse salt to take all the odor and germs out of them. After it’s got a layer of salt on it, cut a lemon in half and swish it around the board. At the end, you should have a sanitized board that smells lemony fresh.

12) Clean out your oven with baking soda and vinegar.

Although nobody looks forward to doing a deep clean of their oven, it’s actually not as difficult as we make it out to be. Though there are many specialty products and foams on the market that are designed for this purpose, there’s actually a simpler and cheaper way. Simply get a bowl and mix together 1/2 a cup of baking soda with a few tablespoons of water to make a paste. Wipe it around your oven and let it sit overnight for about 12 hours. The next day, scrape it all out and finish it off by spraying vinegar solution on the inside and wiping it out.

13) Take paint off of old clothes by using a razor.

If you do much painting or redecorating around your house, there’s a pretty good chance that you have some clothes with too much paint on them. If that’s the case, never fear—you may be able to take that out. Make sure the paint is dried out and then use a normal razor to delicately scrape off the paint from the fibers—just be careful about not cutting your fingers.

14) Use lemons to take out hard water stains.

If you have an old shower or bathtub, you may have a bunch of stains from hard water or limescale. If you can’t visualize this, it’s those web-like lines that you can see outlined on metal and glass. Although many normal cleaners have a hard time taking these marks off, you can use a cut lemon and rub it on them to help out. Let the juices sit for 10 minutes before rinsing with warm water.

15) Use sea salt to clean a cast iron pan.

Though cast iron skillets are very useful in the kitchen, they need a little more tender love and care than some of your other kitchen appliances might. To clean these things, try not to use strong dish soap which can strip away the coating on these pans. Instead, use coarse sea salt to scrub away the leftover residue and do a light rinse at the end instead.

16) Super clean your stainless steel sink

For a super sparkling stainless steel sink, “start by making a paste of water and baking soda. Scrub this around with a sponge, let it dry and then wipe it away with a damp cloth. When your sink is dry, sprinkle in a little flour and with a cloth, polish the steel. Rinse out the flour and let it dry. Finally, put a few drops of olive oil on a clean cloth and use that to shine the steel in your sink.”

17) Use Coca-Cola to clean toilets.

Cleaning the toilet usually means breaking out lots of strong chemicals to make sure everything gets stripped clean. Still, using some of these heavier cleaning solutions isn’t always good for us. To switch things up, you can also pour Coca-Cola in your toilet and let it soak. Scrub like you normally would with your toilet brush and when you flush, the toilet should sparkle. This isn’t a great sign if you drink Coca-Cola, though.

18) Use a squeeze top bottle as a vacuum nozzle

If you have a shop vac lying around the house, you know that not all the attachments it comes with always suit all our needs. Sometimes you need to get into very fine cracks and crannies that the vacuum just isn’t equipped for. To get around that, simply pop the top off of a squeeze bottle and fit it over the end of the vacuum hose—it should be able to get into tiny spaces with no problem.

19) Repair leather furniture with olive oil

Although having a leather couch or recliner is a nice touch in your home, they can easily get scratched up if you have any animals running around. These marks definitely stand out but there’s an easy way to fix them. Simply get a cloth and dab some olive oil on it before rubbing it into the scratched areas. Let the oil dry for an hour and then wipe it all clean with another cloth.

20) Clean your computer or television screen with a coffee filter

If you’ve ever tried to wipe down your computer or TV screen, you know how tricky it can be. You’re not supposed to use strong chemicals and a simple wipe down often leaves trace fibers behind. To get around that, try using the bottom of a coffee filter to wipe down any screens you may have—these catch the dust and leave no trace behind.

21) Take ring stains out of old furniture with a hairdryer

If you’ve ever set a wet glass down on a finished table without a coaster and forgotten about it, you know exactly what happens. You go to lift it up and suddenly there’s a faded and seemingly permanent ring on the table. Fortunately, there’s an easy fix for these problems. Next time you see a ring, get a hair dryer and blow on it for a while. Rub some olive oil into it when you’re done to seal up the spot.

22) Clean your bathtub with grapefruit and salt

Just like with the toilet, the bathtub can be one of the more unpleasant things in the house to clean. To avoid using more strong chemicals, sprinkle coarse salt throughout the bathtub and cut a grapefruit in half. Use the grapefruit like you would a sponge and wipe it all around the tub. When you’re done, rinse the tub out and throw the grapefruit away.

23) Clean lampshades with a lint roller

Do you own a lint roller? If you do, you know just how convenient these devices can be for taking tiny fibers and dust off of your clothing. Still, they also have other uses. Cleaning lampshades can be a pain but using a lint roller on them works surprisingly well. Give it a try yourself!

24) Clean your iron with vinegar and baking soda

If you’ve had an iron for a long time, you probably know that the bottom of the iron starts to accumulate burn residue and build up from being used so often. The extreme heat of the iron seems to really set in whatever it touches. Fortunately, you can fix it. Simply make another mixture of vinegar and baking soda and apply it while the iron is off. Scrub it away and the iron should be as good as new!

25) Clean your microwave with a lemon

Cleaning microwaves is so irritating and unpleasant that we almost never do it. Still, what if there were a simpler way to accomplish this without buying heavy chemicals? To do this, simply get a lemon and cut it in half. Throw the halves into a half glass of water and microwave it all on high for three minutes. Let it stand for five minutes so that the fumes can work on the food stuck on the walls. Once it’s done, wipe down the inside!

26) Use a rubber glove to pick up excess dog hair

Dogs are man’s best friend but they also make our cleaning life quite a bit harder. Dog hair seems to stick to whatever it touches usually—but you can use this fact to your advantage. Simply put on a rubber kitchen glove and wipe your hand over whatever cloth surface is sticky with hair. The glove should easily pick it all up!

27) Clean your shower heads with vinegar and a plastic bag

Though we do a pretty good job cleaning the rest of the bathroom, we don’t usually pay much attention to the shower heads. It may simply be because we don’t know the best way to clean them. Fortunately, we have an easy trick. Simply get a plastic bag and fill it with some vinegar. Pull it around the shower head, tie it tight and let the chemicals work their magic. At the end, run the shower, wipe it down and everything should be good as new.

28) Remove grease and oil from carpets with baking soda

If you haven’t learned by now, baking soda is something like a miracle chemical. One particularly tricky thing to fix is when you get grease or oil stains in a carpet. Fortunately, we have an all-natural solution. Sprinkle baking soda all over the problem area and then spray it with a solution of vinegar and water, mixed 50/50. Let it all set for a few hours and then vacuum it up.

29) Use chalk on any clothing-related grease stains

Similarly, grease can stain your favorite shirts and make it seem like they’ll never be usable again. Wherever the stain is, simply rub some chalk on it and let the dust absorb some of the fat that has soaked into the fibers. Once the chalk has absorbed a good amount of it, wipe it off and wash it like you normally would.

30) Clean your blender easily with a drop of dish soap

Don’t want to wipe out your blender by hand? An easy trick to avoid this is simply to put one drop of dish soap in it and fill it about halfway with water. Run the blender with the soap and the water in it to make suds that will clean out the inside. Once you’re done, rinse it out and it’ll be ready to go.

31) Use toothpaste to clean your sneakers

Not everyone cares equally about how clean their shoes are, but to some people it can be very important. While water and other cleaners don’t always do the job, simply get a toothbrush with a little bit of toothpaste on it and give it a rub into the dirty areas (on white shoes). Scrub it with a toothbrush to lather the dirt and grime out. At the end, wipe the shoes down with a damp towel and you’re good to go.

32) Bathtub/Shower Cleaner

Want to really make that bathtub shine? Simply add 1 partDawn Dishsoap to 1 partvinegar in a dish-wand, seal it tight and it’s ready to go. Run the water in the shower to get it lightly coated, and scrub away to your heart’s content. The mixture cuts right through the soap scum, leaving a squeaky-clean feel to your oh-so-loved shower!

33) Drip-Dry Your Toilet Brush

A tip so simple, you would hardly believe it’s a hack. Yet I can’t even begin to describe how many times I went to clean my toilet right after mopping the bathroom floor. It seems like no big deal until you drip dirty old toilet water all over your fresh floor when you go to scrub! Allow the brush to drip-dry each time you use it by wedging it between the bowl and the seat. Trust me, you’ll thank yourself later.

34) Get Rid Of Mold In Grout And Caulking

Here is a hack I know many a lady will LOVE! You know that really gross mold that builds up in the grout between tiles, and the caulking where the tub meets the wall? Yeah, that brownish-black muck that we all hate. Well, now you can virtually wipe it out!

All you need to do is mix just enough bleach with baking soda to make a thick paste. Make enough to line every place you see the mold in your shower (works on countertops too). Then lay it on thick and let it sit for at least 8 hours (while you catch your zzz’s). Wipe off the paste in the morning, gently scrubbing any stubborn bits off with a toothbrush, and giver her a rinse. Bam! No more nasty shower muck in your grout.

35) Get Those Glass Shower-Doors Sparkling Again

There are two ways to approach cleaning your shower that are both effective and easy. The approach you’ll want to use is totally dependent on how much soap-scum has built up on your shower doors. If you are just doing maintenance cleaning, and there isn’t much soap scum, using worn-out, balled up pantyhose can do wonders for clearing up the water deposits on the shower doors. However, if you are like most of the population and your shower doors haven’t seen a good squeegeeing in a while, then the Magic Eraser is your BEST friend. This works not just for shower doors, but also bathroom mirrors, chrome fixtures, and glass in general.

36) When There Is No Magic Eraser

That’s right! Dryer sheets can do more than soften up your laundry and smell nice. You can use these as an alternative to cleaning your shower doors and mirrors. They remove water spots like a charm, and their anti-static effect makes them perfect for wiping down all the dusty spots in your house.

37) Get Stains Out Of Porcelain

Depending on the shape your sink is in, this a 1 to 3 step process. If you’re only battling a little soap scum, you can get away with using a small amount of Bar-Keeper’s Friend. If your sink is looking pretty miserable though, you can first wash it with dish-soap/detergent to remove any grime and most of the buildup. Then spray your whole surface down with bleach and let it sit for 10-15 minutes. Go ahead and wipe it down, and if it’s clean enough for your liking, go on with your day. If you still have a few marks or stains in the sink, put Bar-Keeper’s Friend on each mark and gently rub it in, then wipe away. You’ll be thrilled at how your sink shines!

38) Deep Clean The Toilet With A Screwdriver

No kidding. I can’t believe I never thought of this before! When things start to smell a bit funky, wrap a Clorox wipe around the tip of your screwdriver, and run it beneath or around those hard to reach places. You will be oh-so-happy you did!

39) Keep Papertowels In Reach And Out of Sight

This is more of a tip than a hack. It’s always nice to have a paper towel handy, especially in one of the dirtiest places in the house. However, they don’t exactly pass for home decor. Have your cake and eat it too, with this nifty mounted shelf paper towel holder!